"Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much."                              

Helen Keller

Our Mission

Our mission is to support, strengthen, and empower our clients through our partnership and advocacy. By doing so, they can focus on what they do best – dealing with our society's challenges while  providing essential social services to the community.   

Our core values

These are our core values that we hold true, core values that we adopted and are ingrained in the National Association of Social Workers (NASW) Code of Ethics.

  • Service

  • Social Justice

  • Dignity and Worth of The Person

  • Importance of Human Relationships

  • Intergrity

  • Competence

Abbey Viado, LCSW, BHP Founder / MANAGING director

Abbey Viado, Founder and Managing Director of Building Bridges Social Work Consulting, is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker (LCSW) in the State of Arizona and a Licensed Master Social Worker (LMSW) in the State of New York. She graduated from New York University (ranked as one of the Best Social Work Schools in the U.S.) with a Master's Degree in Social Work. Abbey completed her undergraduate studies at University of Maryland Baltimore County with a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work, Minor in Political Science.

Abbey has several years of expansive experience in the social work field, both in clinical and macro settings, working with homeless clients, adults with substance abuse and mental health issues, people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, people living with HIV / AIDS, and people in the LGBTQ community. She also volunteered in soup kitchens, food banks, and Habitat for Humanity. In addition, Abbey served as a Legislative Intern / Casework Coordinator at the Maryland General Assembly in Annapolis, Maryland.

While in undergraduate school, Abbey served concurrently as the President of the Social Work Student Association and SAFE Initiative (an LGBTQ student organization). During her tenure as the President of these two student organizations, she led an "Advocacy Day in Annapolis" and spearheaded an initiative to have a gender-neutral bathroom built on campus in her school; a successful initiative which led to the construction and completion of the gender-neutral bathroom before Abbey's graduation from undergraduate school. Abbey is an inducted member of the prestigious Phi Alpha Honor Society for Social Work. 

Prior to her social work career, she held a mid-level management position for several years in a Fortune 500 retail company as well as starting and managing a successful document research company.

Abbey currently manages her own private practice, Zen Therapy, which provides psychotherapy and counseling services to individuals, families, and couples. She is also a Certified Field Instructor for Arizona State University (ASU) School of Social Work.